Related Articles

The Lees feared that the lodging of the appeal meant they were likely to be trapped in the UAE for another year.

Mr Lee said he hopes Australian officials will now lobby on his behalf to ensure no further appeals are lodged.

Mr Lee and fellow Australian businessman Matthew Joyce were arrested in January 2009 over fraud allegations brought by Gold Coast property developer Sunland, after a land deal collapsed during the global financial crisis.

They spent nine months in prison, followed by more than three-and-a-half years under effective house arrest.

The court in May this year sentenced Mr Joyce to ten years in prison and a $25 million fine. It also convicted Melbourne businessman Angus Reed in absentia.

They were found guilty of duping Sunland into giving them $12 million, but both maintain their innocence.

But the court cleared Mr Lee of wrongdoing, and even Sunland itself believed Mr Lee did nothing wrong.

Mr Lee's Brisbane-based lawyer, John Sneddon, said any further appeals would be devastating and urged Dubai authorities to allow the Lees to come home.

"They are sick, they are tired and they have lost everything they ever owned," he said.